Edward's Conundrum
by Bronynumber606
Summary: After a long, hard day at work, Edward looks forward to a nights rest. But first he has to pull a long train full of military supplies, and with a strange sound coming from his wheels, Edward isn't sure he can make it.


Edward's Conundrum

It was deep into autumn on the Island of Sodor. The leaves had long since fallen, and large, dark clouds loomed ominously on the horizon, the late afternoon sun being held at bay by the sheer density of the threatening mass of water in its gaseous form.

Edward, the oldest engine on Sir Topham Hatt's railway, arrived at Tidmouth station, dragging a large goods train behind him. As he came to a stop, Edward let out a long, exhausted "Wheeeesh!" onto the platform. Soon, a railroad worker walked up to Edward, holding a large clipboard.

"Edward, due to Thomas's recent accident, we have assigned Toby and Percy to take over his branch line duties, while you are to take his mainline jobs. Today, we need you to pull a large train from the Sodor Munitions Corps warehouse to Brendam Docks, where it will be taken off your hands."

Edward sighed. He had suspected he would be given Thomas's duties, and was upset that it was so soon after his last task.

"Can't it wait for tomorrow?" Edward asked.

"Sorry, but there's a ship scheduled to leave at midnight, and the next one doesn't leave until December. They need this shipment."

Edward was stuck. He had to take this job, and the workman knew it.

"Alright, I'll do it.", he said at last.

"That's a good engine" his driver replied.

They were uncoupled from their train, and soon Edward dragged himself off towards the warehouse.

As they slowly puffed through the chilly countryside, Edward began to hear a strange sound coming from one of his axels. It sounded like *clink-/chunk/*. Even though it was unfamiliar, it was obvious to Edward that this was not a good thing. In past experiences, he had gotten in huge predicaments for not listening to what his parts were saying.

"Driver," Edward queried, "is something wrong? I hear a strange noise."

"Don't be daft," scoffed his driver, "there's nothing wrong. It's probably just an old bit of metal stuck in a wheel."

Edward stopped talking, but he wasn't so sure about his drivers reply.

Soon, they arrived at the Sodor Munitions Corps storage warehouse. Edward scanned the small yard for a train he had to pull, and saw three heavy-looking trains, each carrying a different load. One was vans marked "DANGER: EXPLOSIVE" and in smaller lettering "Gunpowder van". The second train was flatness carrying military vehicles, including tanks and jeeps. The final was tankers marked "Jet Fuel: FLAMMABLE".

Edward puffed up to the platform, eager to get his job over with. A man in green overalls sat there, looking at a checklist.

"Excuse me sir, which one of those trains will I be taking to Brendam?"

The man looked up at Edward and said, "Well, all of them, of course." The man got up and walked down the platform. "We need the train by at least eleven, and since you took your sweet time getting here, that's two hours from now."

"What are you trying to say?" said Edward, now considerably panicked.

"I'm saying you have to take all of those trains at once, if you want to be on time."

Edward groaned. The *clink-/chunk/* noise flashed in his mind, reminding him that he would be, at the worst, very sore after the days work was done.

"Okay, then, what's the quickest way to Brendam." He asked his driver.

"Well, Maron is the closest station, so I'd say through Maron towards Suddery." His driver said, thinking it through before giving himself a nod.

"Up over Gordon's Hill?!" cried Edward. "I'm far too weak to pull this train on flat ground, let alone that monstrous grade!"

His driver paid no mind to Edward's worries, and soon coupled him up to all the trains.

"Driver, I can't pull this over Gordon's Hill. We must find another engine to pull this train!" Edward pleaded.

"Oh, don't be so modest. Of course you can pull it!" his driver laughed. "In fact, I'm willing to bet that you won't even need a backup engine!"

Edward went pale. "Are you saying I won't have a back engine going over the Hill?" he asked, shaking nervously.

"Yup!" was all his driver said before the train lurched forward.

Edward heaved and pulled and huffed and strained, and sand was poured onto the rails to let his wheels grip. The sound of his wheels spinning to find purchase on the rails was grating to hear, and Edward was sure he was leaving grooves in the rails. At last, the train began to inch forward, and Edward set out to Brendam Docks.

Edward was speeding along the line, the loud train behind him deafening to anyone unfortunate enough to be there as he passed. His driver and fireman worked hard to keep him at that speed, and saw that he was, in fact, speeding up!

"He said he couldn't pull this train, yet look at him!" chuckled the driver to the fireman.

Edward was impressed at his speed. At this rate, he'd be back at Tidmouth before eleven! He smiled to himself, and couldn't believe he had ever doubted himself.

*clink-/chunk/*

Edward's smile vanished. He looked around for what could have made that noise.

*clink-/chunk/ clink-/chunk/*

There it was again, more rapid this time.

*clink-/chunk/ clink-/chunk/*

Edward wished he had more time to focus on the sound, but they were rounding the bend towards Gordon's Hill, and all of his attention was centered on getting over this monster. The train slowed considerably as they steamed up the hill. Smoke poured out of Edward's funnel as his wheels began to struggle and slip. He painfully struggled on up the hill, hearing the groans of protest from the cars behind him. After what seemed like ages, they inched up onto the summit of the hill.

"We did it!" beamed Edward. "We beat the hill and all odds!"

Edward and the train then began the descent, with his driver carefully riding the brakes.

*clink-/chunk/ clink-/chunk/*

Edward's joyful demeanor vanished.

"Driver, there's that noise again." he said, panic beginning to creep into his voice.

His driver scoffed and said, "Pay it no attention, we'll fix it at the bottom of the-"

*clink-/CHUNK/*

There was a large clatter and Edward felt a huge pain flash through his body. He cried out, and his driver pulled the brake to stop the train, but nothing happened. The driver looked at the hole in the floor where the lever passed through, and saw that the brakes had become disconnected from it! Checking the dial, he saw that Edward's speed was already at 30 kilometers per hour, and rising fast. Knowing this would be the only chance he got, he shouted at the fireman to jump, and they both scrambled out of the cab. The fireman landed in a bush, which gained him many nicks and scratches. The driver was not so fabulously lucky. He had neglected to check where he was about to fall, and landed in the path of the express!

Gordon saw him, and blew his whistle as hard as he could." GET OUT OF THE WAY!" he cried, for once not worried about his pride. The driver was disoriented, and tripped on a tie as he ran down the tracks. Gordon squeezed his eyes shut, and the train shook as it crushed the driver.

Edward began to sob, as he had no way of stopping himself, and rocketed down the tracks, nearing speeds of 100 kph. Racing over bridges and smashing through closed level crossings, he cried and hoped someone would hear him, and send help his way.

At Brendam Docks, Cranky the Crane looked out over the horizon. He wasn't busy at the moment, and didn't get many times like this. As his eyes scanned the railway north, he saw a long train headed their way. It was hard to judge its speed, but he knew that, at the point where the train was, the driver should be slowing it down by now. His eyes followed the line the train was on, and discovered the train would end up crashing into the side of an oil tanker at that speed! He put two and two together, and realized that that train must have no driver!

Cranky wasted no time. "There's a runaway train! Clear all main lines and evacuate the area! Move that tanker, it's directly in the path of the train!"

When Cranky shouted, it meant people listened. Workers scrambled to get into high areas, while the oil ship's crew scrambled to get it moving. A tugboat came and began to push, but they had yet to unfasten the ship from the moors. With the tugboat pushing, it would be impossible to unmoor the boat.

Cranky looked for the train, and was frightened to discover that it was much closer now. He could make out in detail what it was pulling, and was terrified to see the gunpowder wagons right next to the fuel tankers, without any sort of buffer car in between. Looking at the one pulling the train, he saw that it was Edward.

"Oh, no." was all that slipped from Cranky's mouth.

Edward was nearing the docks, and he saw the hustle of men running out of his way. He looked ahead, and saw a curve with a radius much to sharp for him to handle at this speed. Looking past that, he realized that he would plunge head first into a oil tanker after derailing. They drew closer and closer to the curve, and as they entered it, Edward shut his eyes.

There was a terrible groan as the rails ripped out from under Edward. His wheels spun wildly as they failed to grip the concrete beneath them. He was pushed forward by the momentum of the train behind him, and he ripped through the hull of the tanker in front of him with the awful sound of metal being ripped apart.

The train behind him began to pile up on top of itself, causing some of the vans to smash open, laying military-grade gunpowder all over the wreck. The fuel tanks were jolted from their harnesses, causing them to fly wildly into things, creating large fires. Vehicles toppled off of the flat cars, and were crushed under the weight of the train behind them.

After what seemed like hours, the train finally settled and had stopped moving. Cranky was the first to open his eyes. Multiple fires had started around the wreck, and gunpowder lay all over the crushed vans. With the fires spreading, there was little time to evacuate.

"Get out of here! It's gonna blow!" He cried, hoping it would make a difference.

Unfortunately, it didn't. The fires made contact with the gunpowder seconds after Cranky shouted, and a large explosion rocked the surrounding area, the whole dock going up in smoke and flame.

Days later, firefighters were able to put out the blaze. Most of the buildings were beyond repair, and there were little survivors. Debris covered the area, and smoldering piles of ash were strewn across the rails. Sir Topham Hatt arrived, and surveyed the damage. He bent down and picked up what was left of a plate that once read "Bill". Hatt placed it down, and began to search for Edward.

"Edward! Edward, can you hear me?" The Controller called. He saw where the rails had been torn apart, and followed the trail of broken metal and bits of cargo until he saw the oil tanker. A large hole had been ripped into the ship, and it had begun to sink. Peering inside, Hatt saw a flash of blue paint. Acting quickly, he ordered the cleanup crew to remove all debris from the ship. Pulling out what they could, Hatt saw Edward in the worst shape he had ever seen. Gashes were torn into the sides of everything, and his cab was crushed by the weight of his tender.

Edward coughed, and Sir Topham Hatt brought himself together.

"Edward, you have been a very naughty engine. Because of your crash, there was confusion and delay. What do you have to say for yourself?!" Hatt boomed.

"I-it wasn't my fault, s-Sir." Edward managed.

"I don't want to hear it. As punishment, you will now stay in the shed with Thomas for a year while we clean up your mess!"

Edward was loaded up onto a flatcar, and was slowly pulled away by Ben.


End file.
